Starting mechanism.



H'. MEREDITH--JONES.

STARTING MEGHANISM.

Patented Feb. 10, 19M

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 13, 1913.

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UNrrnn sauras 'PATENT OFFICE.

HUBERT MER-EDITHIONES, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.. ASSIGNOR TO COLUMBIA NUT AND BOLT COIVIPANY, INCORPORATED, OF BRIDGEPORT, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION or NEW YORK.

STARTING MECHANISM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

resented Feb. 10,1 914.

Application ered January 13, isis. serial No. 741,645.

To all 'whom it may conce-rn Be it known that I, HUBERT Mnnnnrrrr- Jones, a subject of the King of England, residing at New York city, county of New York, State of New York, have invented an Improvement in Starting Mechanism, of which the following is a speciication.

r1`his invention has for its object to provide a simple, easy working and thoroughly reliable mechanical starter which shall be adapted for general use and especially adapted for use upon explosive engines, as the mechanism is self-releasing in the event of ahack-fire.

l/Vith this end in view, I have devised the novel mechanism of which the following description in connection with the accompanying drawing is ay specification, reference characters being used to indicate the several lparts.

Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of one form of the mechanism complete; Fig. 2 a transverse section on the line 2--2 in Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 3 a detail sectional view on the line indicated by 3 in Fig. 2, looking in the direction of the arrow, and Fig. 4 isa detail sectional view illustrating a variation from the form in Fig. 1, which will probably be' the preferred form.

A1() denotes the. engine shaft or an extension thereof, 11 a driven member rigidly cured thereto, 12 a driving member through which the shaft passes independently, 13 a disk which is seciired to rotate with the shaft, as by means of a pin 14, but may slide longitudinally thereonand'l a .nut on the end of the sha-tt by which the. parts are retained in place. This nut iss-hewn as provided with ratchet teeth adapted to receive 'a crank for cranking up at anytime in lieu are4 slightly deeper at one end than at the with arms Z2 and 23 which in use are moved betvv'een the @springs and the balls.

other forminor inclines 21 u on which the The rolls are shown as prof rolls travel. vided with rounded ends, see Fig', 3, and

may or may not Contact light-ly with eachother and with the drivenlmember and disk. The driving rings are provided respectively in the same direction simultaneously Ain any ordinary or preferred manner, as by means of links and a starting lever (not shown). The position of the rolls with relation to the driving rings and driving member will be clearly understood from Fig.' 3, which see in connection with Fig. 2. When the arms are operated as described, one of the driving rings will be moved in one direction and the other ring in the opposite direction. The movement of the rings will be reversed on .he return movement of the arms, so that by oscillating the arms one ofthe driving rings will always be acting to carrythe driving member forward through 'the interposition of the rolls between the inner walls of the driving rings and the inclines. Each time a driving ring moves f/orward it fwill cause lthe corresponding rolls to travelupr an incline and wedge between said rin and the driving member, carrying the drivlng member forward. While this movement is taking place the other driving ring will be moving backward, which will cause the rolls to drop backward into the relatively deep portions of the recesses. An instant later when the arm is reversed, the previously loose rolls will engage the driving member and the previously engaged rolls will drop back in the recesses. I have shown driving ring 16 7as provided with a flange 24 which overlies a corresponding flange on the other ring and driving ring 17 as provided with a ange 25 which overlies the driven member, whereby dust is ell'ectually excluded and the lubricant is retained. r

E2G and 27 denote iront and rear dust caps, carried respectively by driving rings 16 and 17.. "lhese dust caps which inclose the entire mechanism of the starter, may be secured to the driving rings in any suitable manner and are shown as provided with slots in their edges through which the arms extend.

The driven member-and disk are retained in yielding engagement with the driving member by means of springs 2S und balls 2S) which lie in holes 30 in the driving member. )in Fig. 1, both the disk and the driven member are Iprovided with sockets il which are engaged. by balls. ln Fig. 4, the driven .member only isengaged by balls, the springs l being longer and lbearing directly on the disk or on interposed washers. Slightly cupped washers are preferably interposed These springs and balls insure that in starting, the forward movement'of the driving member lwill be communicated to the driven member fand the shaft to turn the engine.

5 l' The operation is as follows: 'lo/start theiengine, (not shown) the operator swings the arms backward and forward, which, by lmeans of the driving rings and the rolls, im-

parts forward movement to the ,f driving member, which movement is, by means or the springs and balls, communicated' to the I driven member and the shaft. The instant the engine starts, the shaft, driven member and driving` member will be caused 'to rotate faster than the forward movement of the operative driving ring, the effect of which will be to disconnect the driving member therefrom, the rolls dropping back into the deep portions of the'recesses and leaving the starting mechanism wholly disconnected from the shaft. Should a back-fire of the engine take place, the effect will be to instantly and forcibly drive the shaft in the reverse direction, carrying with it the driven member and the disk.' The driving member however, is prevented from moving backward-With the shaft owingy to the forwardly driving pressure of the starting mechanism. The springs now yieldl and permit the balls to pass from socket to socket in the driven member, as in Fig. 2, or in both driven member and disk, as in Fig. 1,

until the power lof the back-fire has exhausted itself, after which the springs and balls will again lock thedriving member to the driven member and the disk and the staiting mechanism will again turn the shaft forward.

Having thus described my invention I claim:

1. Starting mechanism comprising a driving member having peripheral recesses with inclines, driving rings outside the driving member, rollsbetween the inclines and the rings, a ldriven member, a disk and yielding means carried by the driving member and lyingv intermediate the driven member and the disk for yielding] y ing member to the driven member. Y

2. Starting mechanism comprising a driven member, a disk, a driving ,member intermediate/the driven member and the disk, alternately engaging driving means mounted upon the driving member and yielding means carried by the driving memer and engaging the driven member and the disk for yieldingly locking the driving member to the driven member.

3. Startin mechanism comprising a driving member aving peripheral're'cesses with inclines, driving ringsn outside the driving members rolls between the inclines and the locking the driv rings, a disk, a driven member provided on its inner face with sockets, springs carried by the driving membei' and bearingA on the disk and balls controlled by the springs and adapted to engage the sockets to y'ieldingly lock the driving member to the driven member and permit backward movement of the driven member and disk independently of the driving member should a backfire take place.

4. Starting mechanism comprising a driving member having transverse holes and peripheral recesses with inclines, driving rings outside the driving member, rolls 'between the inclines and the rings, a driven member, a disk, and springs in the holes in the driving member and acting on the driven member and disk, substantially as described, for the purpose specified.

'5. Starting mechanism comprising a driven member, a driving member, and a disk, spring controlled means carried by the driving member and engaging the disk and the driven member, whereby the driving member and the driven member are yield inglyl locked together and alternately engaging driving means/mounted upon the driving member.

6. Starting lmechanism comprising a driving member having" holes, a driven member, a disk, springs lying in the holes in the driving member and actingon the driven member and disk for yieldingly locking the driving' and driven members together, and

alternately engaging driving means mounted on the driving member.

7. Starting mechanism comprising a shaft, a driving member loose thereon, a driven member rigidly secured thereto, a disk rotating with the shaft, springs -carried bythe driving member and acting upon the disk and driven member whereby the driving and driven members are yieldingly locked together driving means mounted upon the driving n'iember.

8. Starting mechanism comprising a shaft.l a driven member rigidly secured thereto, a disk adapted to rotate with the shaft, ay loose driving member intermediate the driven member and the disk, means carthc driven member and disk to yieldingly lock said parts together and alternately engaging driving means mounted upon the driving member.

In testimony whereof I atiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HUBERT MEREDITH-J ONES. Titnesses z ALBERT KALMBACH, EUGENE Lerner..

and alternately engaging `ried by the driving member and engaging 

